Wednesday, April 30, 2014

The Evolution Of Calpurnia Tate

The Evolution Of Calpurnia Tate

Juvenile historical fiction
"...So I didn't like to talk patterns and recipes and pour tea
in the parlor. Did that make me selfish? Did it make me odd? Worst
of all, did it make me a disappointment?..."
Calpurnia, narrator of Jacqueline Kelly's The Evolution Of
Capurnia Tate, is the exact middle child of seven. She's also the
only daughter of a very proper, very traditional woman whose life
revolves around house, church, and family. She's often painfully
aware that she's probably not what her mom anticipated on the day she
gave birth to her one and only girl child.
Calpurnia has very strong passions. They just don't revolve
around cooking and cleaning. Her tatting and embroidery leave much to
be desired. Baking lessons are an ordeal.
As the story begins Calpurnia and her retired grandfather, the
family patriarch who lives with them, become unlikely allies. He's a
naturalist, a formidale seeming fellow, a free thinker who debates the
then new Origin Of The Species with the family's minister. One day he
is horrified to discover the deficiencies in her education. She is
only studying reading, spelling, arithmetic, penmanship, and
deportment. ("I got an 'acceptable' for Posture but 'unsatisfactory'
for Use of Hankie and Thimble.") She's never heard of Sir Isaac Newton
or Sir Francis Bacon!
From then on he introduces her to a new and wondrous world, one
much more fascinating than tatting lace collars. He shows her to find
the most cleverly camoflauged of critters. He describes the
scientific method. They observe a deer and calf. He gives her a
fragile hummingbird's nest.
In my favorite passage from the book her grandfather shows
Calpurnia a drop of river water under a microscope. "Something with
many tiny hairs rowed past at high speed; something else with a
lashing tail whipped by; a tumbling barbed sphere like a medieval mace
rolled past; delicate, filmy ghostlike shadows flitted in and out of
the field. It was chaotic, it was wild, it was...the most amazing
thing I'd ever seen."
Even as they grow closer, there are forces at work to end or at
least weaken their partnership. Calpurnia's mom has decided she's old
enough to learn how to manage a household. There are socks to knit,
recipes to learn from the cook...and that all important debutante
season where her family can formally notify eligible bachelors of her
availability. Calpurnia likens that ritual to a slave auction.
Looking ahead to the only future society seems to allow her,
Calournia feels like a trapped beast. But the world is on the verge
of not only a new year, but a new century. Surely there must be just
a glimmer of hope.
The Evolution Of Calpurnia Tate is a must read for every girl or
woman who has ever fought to define herself in a still too stereotyped
society. Calpurnia is a spunky articulate heroine you can't help
rooting for. Each chapter starts with a quote from Darwin's Origin Of
The Species that cleverly ties natural history in with the workings of
her family and community.
On a personal note, Calpurnia and I would have been chums. The
natural world has always fascinated me. I could sit for hours
watching, drawing, and writing descriptions of environs like tidal
pools. As soon as I was allowed to handle sharp instruments I began
to dissect animal specimens, including a 5' great white shark, in the
bathroom. (Mom would just say, "Clean up after yourself." I suspect
Calpurnia's would have required a strong dose of Lydia Pinkham's for
her poor shattered nerves.). In fact, in a delightful sort of irony, I
became so engrossed in writing this review the shortcake biscuits I
had in the oven nearly burned before I thought to pull them out.
Calpurnia would have appreciated that!
A great big shout out goes out to my sisters in spirit past, present,
and future.
Julia Emily Hathaway


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Paperboy

Paperboy

Juvenile fiction
When the hubby and I moved to Veazie in anticipation of our
first baby, one of the first folks who knocked on my door was 11-year-
old P. J. (Peter Junior) Munn. He let me know that he would really
appreciate the chance to deliver the Bangor Daily News to my door.
That was an offer I could not refuse. P. J. and his little sister,
Heather, came through beautifully. When I was able to grab my first
coffee of the day my paper was always right at hand. And my carriers
were some of the most courteous young people I saw on a regular basis.
Maybe you've had that kind of experience. Maybe you were the
young woman or man bundling the newspapers and heading off in the wee
hours on your appointed round. Maybe your growing up years were
effected by your on the job training and close encounters of the
customer kind. Vince Vawter captures the essence of this coming of
age ritual beautifully in his first novel, Paperboy.
Stuttering is a torment for 11-year-old Victor. So many words
containing problem sounds are difficult for him to say, including his
own name. In baseball he's a pitching star. Off the mound just
answering seemingly simple questions or expressing thoughts is a
serious challenge. In 1959 speech therapy was not as state of the art
as it is today.
Needless to say, when he takes over his vacationing best
friend's paper route for a month, Friday afternoon collections are
what scares Victor. Just anticipating telling someone he or she owes
ninety-five cents gives him the heebie jeebies. Deliveries seem
easy. All his practice in precise and powerful throwing would be a
decided asset. What he is not at all prepared for is the knowledge of
some of his customers he gains. A beautiful red haired woman has him
fearing for her safety. A retired merchant marine shows him new and
fascinating ways in which to view the world.
Oh, yeah, and simmering in the background is a very real danger
posed by a neighborhood junk man with a penchant for theft and violence.
After reading Paperboy, it came as no surprise to learn that
Vawter had to overcome stuttering in his own life. His protagonist's
voice is too authentic to be based on anything other than personal
experience. This poignant coming of age novel, combining memoir and
fiction, is a good summer reading list selection.
On a personal note, last Saturday was the long awaited first session
of Orono Community Garden. We cleared beds and did the first seed
sowing. I was quite proud of being able to shovel out a whole truck
load of mulch without the slightest ache or stiffness.
A great big shout out goes out to kids and adults who struggle with
speech impediments and the professionals who help them find their
voices.
Julia Emily Hathaway


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The Power Of Habit

The Power Of Habit

Adult Nonfiction
According to Charles Duhigg, author of The Power Of Habit: Why
We Do What We Do In Life And Business, much of our life is conducted
on autopilot. A decision or action that takes conscious intent
becomes something we do without thinking--a decidedly double edged
sword. On the good side it streamlines routines so we can accomplish
more. Remember how much concentration parallel parking took when you
first learned it? On the bad side it can lock us into practices that
we can't seem to break even when we come to regret them. I know my
mom used to wonder if I would jeopardize my future honeymoon by thumb
sucking when even the bitterest of substances had no effect on that
annoying practice.
Fortunately for us, Duhigg is quick to assert that habits do not
have to be destiny. If you become aware of the componants of habits
and analyze how they manifest themselves in your life you can replace
them with better responses to the cues that elicit them. Notice he
does not say giving them up because the cues are still there. Let's
look at that thumb sucking. Mom's just say no approach did not work
because I still went to bed every night. It was when I substituted
another way of getting to sleep (well before the honeymoon) that I was
able to keep my thumb where it would not deter a future husband.
Duhigg does a great service to all of us who would like to at
least tweak a habit. Rather than give one of those annoying my way or
the highway lists, he encourages self examination. What is it about a
cup of coffee that necessitates a cigarette? Why, despite best
intentions, do we often flop on the sofa and turn on the tv istead of
at least taking a walk? The kind of insight he encourages can become
a very workable action plan. One success can be the motivation for
more attempts in a positive cascade.
However, Duhigg gives us a whole lot more to ponder. He shows
us how his principles apply very well to marketing and movements.
He's got everything from why and how Target determines which of their
customers are pregnant to why Rosa Parks' refusal to give up her bus
seat triggered the Civil Rights movement. He uses a very readable
blend of research and anecdote to create a book most of us would do
well to read. You might just want to blunt the power of marketers to
reel you in with their highly researched tactics. And if you're at
all like me, yearning to change the world, you will find a real
treasure.
On a personal note, Duhigg shows that changing just one keystone habit
can lead to almost automotic transformations in others. That affirmed
something that had happened to me not long before I got my hands on
the book. I had some money my college professor mother had left me.
I decided to not only leave it alone in my savings account, but to add
a little each week. Even though I have no regular paying job I
decided it would happen. What I deposit is often just what I glean
from deposits on cans and bottles people throw out or toss on the road
side. By conventional standards it's highly unimpressive. I've heard
it quipped that: oh, wow, I have enough to buy one textbook. Just
having and adding to that small sum makes my goal of grad school feel
attainable. I've set a target year, attended an open house, gathered
information, and begun documenting my relevant school board vice chair
achievements (and arranging for really challenging ones) that can give
me an edge over the fresh-out-of-college competition. I walk taller
and speak with more confidence. I've told enough people my plans to
make chickening out not an option. Last but not least, walking has
gone from a bus fare saving obligation to year round Easter egg hunt,
thanks to those beautiful cans and bottles I can collect and cash in.
YOWZA!
A great big shout out goes out to all who strive to change the habits
that make their lives less fulfilling.
Julia Emily Hathaway


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Sunday, April 20, 2014

catalyst

catalyst

YA novel
When I read the impossible knife of memory I became a big time
Laurie Halse Anderson fan. I looked for any of her previous books in
the library and was pleased and excited to find Catalyst. YOWZA! The
woman is one of the best ever at creating credible realms of
experience and people the reader can really care about.
Kate Malone, its narrator, would seem outwardly to have it all
together. She's an honor student and major academic prize winner.
She runs long distance for her school. She has a great boyfriend.
Everything in her life seems as organized as the chemistry she adores.
There is, however, a lot more to her than would meet the eye.
Her minister father is highly involved with his congregation, not so
much with his family. Kate runs the household, having charge of
managing her younger brother's chronic illness as well as the chores.
Colleges are sending out acceptance and rejection letters. She's only
applied to MIT, a college that can cherry pick from the nation's high
schools' best and brightest.
Rather than something to be envied, Kate's life is like a Jenga
game. You know-- the stack of blocks where you take turns trying to
remove one without causing the whole pile to collapse. And it's about
to change in a very drastic way. When a family is burned out of their
home her father takes in their children. Now she's sharing her room
with a girl who seems to be her polar opposite in every way and her
very little brother.
While that all important letter sealing her fate will be
arriving any day.
On a personal note, I want to wish all my readers who celebrate it a
very Happy Easter.
A great big shout out goes out to high school kids who have to accept
far too much responsibility.
Julia Emily Hathaway



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Tuesday, April 15, 2014

Going Batty

Going Batty

Picture books
A couple of weeks ago, shelving in the children's wing, I found
two charming volumes featuring my favorite flying mammals. Needless
to say, they ended up in my backpack. Brian Lies' Bats of the Library
and Bats at the Beach combine lively rhyming narrative with whimsical
illustrations to provide a true flight of the imagination.
Bats at the Beach gives a cherished family tradition a decidedly
new spin. Of course the critters of the night converge on the shore
after the sun goes down, armed with moon-tan lotion. Their snacks are
a little different than what we'd pack. And wait til you see how they
surf!
Bats at the Library shows what can happen when someone leaves
the window open at quitting time. Winged creatures, some
bespectacled, come swooping in to peruse their favorite books. The
littlest ones, not yet introduced to literacy, play with strange
machines...until they succumb to a very strong allure.
On a personal note, despite what you learn from YA novels and other
popular sources, most bats dine on fruit or insects. They are not
sometimes sparkly neck nippers that morph into coffin dwelling blood
drinkers. They have more reason to be afraid of us than we of them.
I think any book with the potential to reduce the terror many parents
and children feel about this misunderstood mammal is a good one.
A great big shout out goes out to the scientists and others who are
working diligently to discover why so many bats are dying and come up
with a solution to this problem.
Julia Emily Hathaway





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the impossible knife of memory

the impossible knife of memory

YA fiction
"I blink and I forget why I walked into the room. I forget why
I am driving on this road. The remembering takes up every breath
until there is no room for today. I pour a drink, ten drinks, so I
can forget that I have forgotten today. I smoke. Choke down pills.
Pray. Eat. Sleep. Shit. Curse."
Andy, father of Hayley, protagonist of Laurie Halse Anderson's
the impossible knife of memory, has been through Hell and never
returned. He went to war a good soldier and officer, believing in
America and the rightness of its mission. What he experienced tore
him apart. For example, there is a description of firing into a house
supposedly full of insurgents, only to find it contained women and
children, seeing a tiny blood stained hand. He's physically safe in
America, but his mind is trapped in a recurring loop of his worst and
most terrifying memories. He can't take care of himself, never mind
the teen age daughter he is the sole parent of.
As the story opens Andy and Hayley have settled down in his
grandmother's house after years of long distance trucking, of trying
to outrun Andy's memories. Hayley hasn't been in school since about
middle school. Now, as a high school senior, she's in very foreign
territory. Academics, particularly precalculus, aren't going too
well. Her guidance counselor is pushing her to adjust and get on the
college bound track. And, oh yeah, when she goes home she is never
sure what shape her dad will be in. Will he have skipped work? Spent
the day drinking? Maybe worse?
In Hayley's mind, most of her classmates exist in an entirely
different plane of existence. "Maybe that's why I want to slap so
many of the zombies; they had no idea how freaking lucky they were.
Lucky and ignorant, happy little rich kids who believed in Santa Claus
and the tooth fairy and thought that life was supposed to be fair."
Life certainly isn't fair to her. By all indications her dad is
getting more trapped in his past and less predictable. His alcoholic
ex girlfriend may be trying to reenter the picture. How can she hold
things together?
Although Andy and Hayley are fictitious characters, their
situation is only too real. A lot of kids come home from school to
dads or moms who have been deeply scarred by tours of duty. Not only
is it terribly painful to see a loved one suffering terribly, but
sometimes there is the need for the child to parent the parent. the
impossible knife of memory is another very thought provoking and
eminently well worth reading novel from an author who specializes in
bringing up topics most people would rather ignore.
On a personal note, spring seems to have finally arrived in Maine.
Ginormous snow mountains are being reduced to puddles. Grass and
flowers are poking up through the ground. Robins are bobbing around
in search of worms. My long haired cat is shedding clouds of fur.
And my construction worker hubby is tossing mud caked clothes into the
hamper. Friday, April 12, was my first bare foot day of the year.
Until probably November I'll wear shoes only where they're required.
Actually walking outside bare foot is very good for maintaining
balance. I'm in no hurry to incur a bone breaking fall and get
sentenced to rehab.
A great big shout out goes out to all our nation's wounded warriers
and the people who love them.
Julia Emily Hathaway


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Monday, April 14, 2014

Wrong Side of the Tracks

Wrong Side of the Tracks

YA novels
Probably in your younger years you were told to stay away from
certain peers. Maybe they came from the wrong neighborhood, the wrong
family. Maybe they wore too much makeup and too short skirts and were
rumored to smoke in the school bathroom and be loose. They were so
fallen that just associating with them would taint you.
Well recently I read two excellent YA historical fiction novels
told from the perspective of wrong side teens. Shadrach, 14,
protagonist of A. B. Westrick's Brotherhood, is part of a KKK family
in the post Civil War South. Ruby Jacinski, narrator of Christine
Fletcher's Ten Cents A Dance, is a 1940's taxi dancer. An added
bonus: the stories behind the writing of the novels are gems in their
own right.
Brotherhood has a very dramatic first chapter. Shadrach wakes
up to a real life nightmare. Government agents break into his house
and arrest his older brother, Jeremiah. Their widowed mother tells
him to go get his grandfather. A man who was stuffed into a barrel
and left to die has lived long enough to identify 'the Weaver boy' as
one of his assailants.
Shadrach had seen Jeremiah slip out of their bedroom window and
followed him into the night darkness. He'd ended up being
blindfolded, guided to a covert location, and then initiated into a
secret society. At first it seems to be all good. He enjoys the
commaraderie and the way members look out for each other. And what
could be wrong about protecting Confederate widows and orphans?
Gradually Shadrach learns of the organization's dark secrets.
At first there are tasks he doesn't feel right about. When he and a
friend are sent to intimidate a black family he sees abject terror in
children's eyes. Then after awhile things turn downright ugly.
The entirity of Shadrach's family is involved in or knowing of
KKK activities. But much of what Shadrach is learning convinces him
they could be dangerously wrong and harming innocent people. You want
to talk about divided loyalties.
"In this novel, I tried to depict the tensions ordinary,
impoverished, and poorly educated white Southerners might have felt
during the period of Reconstruction. They were grieving massive
losses of property, friends, and family while struggling to understand
and adjust to enormous political and economic changes."
Westrick's parents, former Southerners, raised their daughter in
Pennsylvania. She and her husband moved to Virginia in quest of her
roots. Brotherhood is the fruit of her search for her ancestor's fate.
Ten Cents A Dance was also conceived from its authors curiosity
about her family history. Fletcher's mother had an Aunt Sofia whom
her grandmother refused to speak about. As a teen, Sofia had been
kicked out of her family by her father who declared her dead and
forbid the rest of the clan to see her. She had supported herself as
a taxi dancer.
"Taxi dancers inhabited a kind of grey area: they weren't
prostitutes, but the profession certainly wasn't respectable, either.
Men paid, not for sex, but to be able to hold a pretty girl close for
the length of a dance, a girl who would listen to them and pay
attention to them. Girls (and they often were girls) chose it because
it seemed fun, and because they could earn easily twice as much money
as they might in a factory or other socially acceptable job."
This was certainly the case with Ruby Jacinski. As the book
opens her life seems bleak indeed. At an age when girls today think
of boyfriends, social lives, and college she's the sole support of her
arthritis crippled mother and her younger still-in-school sister,
working canning pickled pigs' feet. "I'd been there a month and
already I felt a hundred years old. Just another packinghouse worker
in a bloody, soaking apron; fingernails soft and cracking from the
brine; and a smell I couldn't get out of my skin..."
Not surprisingly, when a bad boy with a whispered about history,
Paulie, returns to her neighborhood and shows an interest in her Ruby
is intrigued. He says that with her dancing ability she doesn't need
to work in a packinghouse. She could earn much more. And he knows
who she should go see.
Right off Ruby is drawn into the feuds and alliances of her
chosen profession. She learns that the top earners do a lot more than
dancing, often duping clients for the big bucks. Figuring out just
how far she wants to go is very tricky. She is in love with Paulie,
who appears and disappears mysteriously. He may not be who she wants
him to be. The nightclub scene has its gangster connections. And
there's always the danger she might be found out and disowned by the
mother who believes she's working as a night shift telephone operator.
Both Brotherhood and Ten Cents A Dance are exquisitely written
novels in which the narrators come of age under circumstances that
would challenge adults. They are very good choices for high school
students who need books for independent reading and don't want bland,
boring, and superficial.
On a personal note, last night Orono Arts Cafe was the total cat's
pajamas. We opened with a jazz band. The joint was jumping. The
audience was really supportive. When I read my poetry they were
really into it. The last few acts we had a bird (that almost everyone
thought was a bat) flying around the room. Never a dull moment.
A great big shout out goes out to all who shared that very enchanting
evening. YOWZA!
Julia Emily Hathaway



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Sunday, April 6, 2014

Your Life Calling

Your Life Calling

As faithful readers of my blog know, I'm really trying to figure
out a post child raising life that centers on the things I put on the
back burner in my parenting years: grad school, activism and
solidarity, and becoming a published writer. I feel like people about
to set off on the Oregon Trail did back in the day. I'm talking
unchartered territory. So when I saw Jane Pauley's Your Life Calling:
Reimagining the Rest of Your Life in the Orono Public Library new book
section I was some excited, let me tell you!
I'm finding out how hard it is to get back in the game after
decades raising children, especially since the technology skills
needed for good jobs have left me way behind. I hear how many woman
in my position settle for the first thing they can find. For me that
would not be life. There have to be more meaningful possibilities.
Jane Pauley has my back. She says this is the year the last of
the baby boomers turn fifty. But it's not our parents' fifty. "Those
of us living today have been handed a remarkable gift with no strings
attached--an extra thirty years of life for the average person. Now
that gift is forcing us to answer a uniquely twenty-first century
question--what are we going to do with our supersized lives?" YOWZA!
We need to make transitions mindfully to take advantage of those
potentialy good and meaningful years.
In a book that reminds me of a Victorian crazy quilt where
dazzlingly unique patches are united into a coherent whole, Pauley
uses her story and those of some really fascinating people to make
insightful points. There's Sylvia who enrolled in college after being
laid off and became a substance abuse counselor. She says, "I would
define success as pouring yourself into what you do, into what you
have a passion for doing, giving compassion to others, and basically
changing the world one individual at a time." There's Gid who became a
stand up comedian at the age of 61. "We're the first generation that
gets a do-over." There's Jerry who gained a rich sense of community
when he went from a lucrative career to a volunteer fire and rescue
squad. And there are others including Pauley who is a frank and
fascinating woman.
I can't imagine reading Your Life Calling and not becoming
engrossed in its lively narrative style. I also can't imagine not
being energized and inspired. I think anyone approaching a
significant life transition, even one years away, should check this
book out. I'm surely glad I did!
On a personal note, I was reading Your Life Calling draped across one
of my favorite comfy chairs in the University Commuter Lounge, all
tricked out business casual for the grad school open house. I was set
on fire by a quote by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.: "Faith is taking the
first step even when you can't see the whole staircase." That's just
what I was about to do. Another quote that really struck home was by
J. K. Rowling: "It is impossible to live without failing at something
unless you live so cautiously that you might as well not have lived at
all." That is one thing no one can accuse me of. I've failed at
plenty of stuff (including my first PhD program) and always bounced
back ready to try something else!
A great big shout goes out to all the others who are in the thrilling
process of self rediscovery. Bon voyage!
Julia Emily Hathaway



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Saturday, April 5, 2014

Humans Of New York

Humans Of New York

Adult picture
In 2010 Brandon Stanton lost his bond trader job. Unlike others
in this plight he didn't start hunting leads, reconnecting with
contacts, writing a resume, and ironing interview suits. That year
he'd gotten his first camera and fallen in love. He decided he would
become a photographer.
His parents were not happy campers. He was giving up a "real"
profession for something that did not meet their definition of work.
I'm sure they tried to talk some sense into his head. Fortunately he
didn't listen. His photography turned into a blog which evolved into
a very colorful book: Humans Of New York.
Humans of New York has 400 color photographs and many of the
subjects' stories. Many will touch your heart or really make you
think. There's a refugee from what was Yugoslavia who earned a degree
while working as a janitor 12 years at Columbia University. A young
couple with a very new baby declare, "We're gonna be fine." A man
visiting his wife in a nursing home, tenderly holding her hand
explains that, "Even when the mind is gone, the heart shows through."
On a two picture spread a man and woman who met forty-seven years ago
on a picket line sit on a park bench while a bus riding boy shows his
teddy bear chum the sights out the window. A skateboarding girl
states, "I'm hoping to map out the places where homeless people stay.
Then I'll get a whole group of skaters to deliver bags with food and
necessities."
Some of the pictures are just plain whimsical. In one of my
favorites a smiling, turquoise haired girl says she stopped studying
to be a ballet dancer to learn how to become a trapeze artist. Her
parents' reaction? They were happy she wasn't calling home crying
every night. A woman who looks like she's in her eighties lets us
know that every time she forces herself to go out something wonderful
happens. A puppy peers out of a pocketbook; a larger dog runs through
grass and gone to seed dandelions. A couple of puppies captioned THE
1 PERCENT are dressed up more fancy than most people. A person in a
pink gorilla suit leaning against a cello is captioned, "DAMN LIBERAL
ARTS DEGREE."
This book is really fun to read. It certainly contradicts
rumors about what New Yorkers are like that circulate in the more
rural states.
On a personal note, I'm really impressed that the author had the
courage to try what he was interested in.
A great big shout out goes out to all who pursue their dreams even
when those they love think they're crazy.
Julia Emily Hathaway


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Thursday, April 3, 2014

Don't Grown-Ups Ever Have FUN?

Don't Grown-Ups Ever Have FUN?

Picture book
One of my favorite books from when Adam was a little boy is
Jamie Harper's Don't Grow-Ups Ever Have FUN? A trio of lively kids
try to understand their parents. They sleep in and then rush around
madly. Dad wears drab suits to a boring office. Mom doesn't share
her stuff or let the kids help her. Not to mention both parents seem
to enjoy cleaning up!
The pictures are probably the most fun part of the book. Even
as they bemoan their parents' boring life the siblings are adding
their own colorful touches to the environment. Children and parents
will both find reason to laugh when this fine book is a bed time read
aloud.
On a personal note, I'd like to see a sequel: Don't Hubbies Ever Have
FUN? A lot of husbands, even those with fine wives like me, seem to
think that coming home, eating supper, and watching tv is the perfect
after work script. They never want to dance, visit friends, watch a
talented wife perform, play in the snow, make a campfire, take a walk,
swim, or even play cards or board games. Mine can't even get excited
about the Bangor State Fair with its rides and games and good food
including a gazillion flavors of snow cones and the magic moment at
dusk when the colored lights come on. Honestly!
A great big shout out goes out to kids who keep their parents young.
Julia Emily Hathaway


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Spunky Girls

Spunky Girls

Picture books
The young protagonist of The Chicken-Chasing Queen of Lamar
County just can't keep her hands off the poultry. Big Mama keeps
warning her that if she keeps driving the hens crazy they won't lay
eggs. She likes eggs, doesn't she? Well yeah, but not enough to
change her ways. Now there is one Miss Hen she has never been able to
catch. Speed, stealth, and trying to think like a chicken don't help
any. She just gets more determined until she discover's Miss Hen's
special secret.
Shelley Jackson's spirited illustrations, a blend of realism and
collage, fit the text perfectly. The young protagonist's face is of
so expressive and those chickens are something else!
Mary Hoffman's Princess Grace gives a very creative ending to
what could have been a tragically stereotyped story. All her young
life Grace has wanted to be a princess. She is over the moon when she
learns that two girls from her class will be chosen to be princesses
in a parade. But what do princesses wear and what do they do other
than looking beautiful?
Well you'll have to read the book and find out.
On a personal note, today was the first really spring like day of the
year. I walked home from Orono without a coat. That felt amazing.
A great big shout out goes out to all the folks enjoying a blissfully
sunny day.
Julia Emily Hathaway




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Here, Kitty, Kitty, Kitty

Here, Kitty, Kitty, Kitty

Picture books
Recently I discovered three gems for cat lovers of all ages in
the Orono Public Library picture book section.
Sandy Ferguson Fuller's My Cat, Coon Cat is a love story told in
verse. A little girl finds a skittish coon cat on her porch. Showing
more patience than most adults, she follows it respectfully, observing
its activities, laying out a bowl of milk. When a storm arrives her
kindness is rewarded by a new friend sharing her cozy home. Jeannie
Brett's lively illustrations show a deep familiarity with Maine as in
when Coon Cat stalks a dragonfly through a field of lupines. Coon
cats have been the Maine State cat since 1895. Only two other states
(Massachusetts and Maryland) even have state cats!
Cat And Bear is a tale of rivalry just about any child (or
adult) who has a younger sibling will be able to relate to. Cat has
been a child's beloved companion. When a teddy arrives as a burthday
gift Cat is not amused. "'The Child already has a furry friend,' he
growled. "Me. Bear is unnecessary.'"
Bear sings little songs which really rub Cat the wrong way.
When Bear gets affection from the child cat decides to take matters
into his own paws. A series of "accidents" happens. A fall out the
window seems to do the trick...
...so why is Bear having trouble sleeping? Didn't he get his
wish?
C. Roger Mader's Lost Cat is a sweet little love story. Slipper
has lived since kittenhood with a senior citizen, enjoying food,
attention, and a cozy place to sleep at night. One day the lady's
daughter moves her to live with her family. Forgotten Slipper chases
the van valiantly before giving up and looking for someone to adopt.
No one is quite right until...
...nah, not gonna give this ending away.
Mader was told that as a writer he should let the story come to
him. So when a grey and white cat came to his door he did just that.
His speculations on its origin became the story while the cat itself
was the model for the illustrations. Both man and cat won out since
the cat got itself a loving family. How cool is that?
All three books are the total cat's pajamas. Youngsters will
request for them to be read again and again.
On a personal note, I read the books and wrote the review with my own
tuxedo cat, Joseph Jacob Hathaway, curled up contentedly on my lap.
A great big shout out goes out to dear sweet cats and all who treasure
them.
Julia Emily Hathaway and Joey Cat


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Flygirl

Flygirl

YA fiction
One of the most evocative YA historical fiction novels I have
ever read goes by the simple name Flygirl. Sherri Smith wrote it as
her master's thesis. She was inspired by hearing about the WASP
program on her radio. Lucky for us we can learn about it via her
riveting but down to earth narrative.
Ida Mae Jones must make decisions that would be agony for women
twice her age. World War II is not going well. Ida's beloved brother
Thomas is a field medic in the South Pacific. A lot of soldiers are
dying over there fighting the Japanese. Ida thinks there must be
something more meaningful than collecting nylons and saving bacon
grease for the war effort. One day little brother, Abel, shows her
the way. A newspaper column describes how women are being trained to
be Women Airforce Service Pilots and free male pilots to fight
oversees. This would be perfect for Ida who has longed to follow in
her pilot father's footsteps.
There is, however, a fly in the ointment. The United States in
the 1940's is highly racially segregated. Although not explicitly
stated, this new program is white women only need apply. Ida is light
skinned enough to pass, a highly risky move. She'll have to live
vigilantly, mindfully saying and doing nothing to give her race away.
There will be severe consequences if her secret is discovered. And
she must never acknowledge her beloved and much darker skinned family.
Of course this isn't the only peril. Some of the missions women
get sent on such as towing targets for artillary practice are quite
dangerous.
If you want to read a poignant and inspiring story of a young
women coming of age under very challenging circumstances you couldn't
do better than Flygirl.
On a personal note, I can identify with Ida, having that flying bug
myself. Being blind in one eye grounds me. But I have a son with two
good eyes aimed for the skies. Someday he will take me where I can't
go myself.
A great big shout goes out to our next generation of pilots. May they
soar high and land safely!
Julia Emily Hathaway


Sent from my iPod